Citation

Morgan C. Crim. Justice Behav. 1981; 8(3): 259-273.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1981, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/009385488100800301

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The need for mental health services in jails has become evident to both correctional and mental health personnel in recent years as the number of mentally disordered inmates has increased in the jail population. The President's Commission on Mental Health (PCMH, 1978) has noted that community mental health systems have not provided successful treatment to certain subgroups of people and that comparisons of this population with the jail population include many of the same subgroup members. They consequently reached the conclusion that a large percentage of jail and prison inmates are mentally disabled and recommended that these people should have access to appropriate mental health services. However, little proactive work has been done to study the nature of mental health problems in jails, the specific services that should be provided, or who should most appropriately deliver such services. Based upon the need for inquiry into this problem, several federally sponsored programs have been initiated since 1976 in an effort to seek new solutions and to remove the mentally ill from our nation's jails.

Language: en